Tag: tone

Spot gold rose 0.4 percent to $1,290.84 per ounce as at 0310 GMT, heading for a fourth straight weekly gain. U.S. gold futures were up 0.3 percent at $1,290.8 per ounce. “The weaker dollar and a more dovish Fed are the two most alluring factors for gold,” said Stephen Innes, APAC trading head at OANDA. “The (gold) market is holding back a little as they are concerned the equity market could rally significantly on trade war truce,” Innes said. Palladium 0.4 percent to $1,326.75 per ounce, and was

Gold prices climbed on Friday as the dollar fell back on expectations the U.S. central bank may pause interest rates hikes if the U.S. economy slows this year, while investors awaited news on progress in the Sino-U.S. trade talks.

Spot gold rose 0.4 percent to $1,290.84 per ounce as at 0310 GMT, heading for a fourth straight weekly gain. The yellow metal is up 0.4 percent so far this week.

U.S. gold futures were up 0.3 percent at $1,290.8 per ounce.

“The weaker dollar and a more dovish Fed are the two most alluring factors for gold,” said Stephen Innes, APAC trading head at OANDA.

“There are concerns for the U.S. economy to slow down, perhaps towards the end of 2019 and into 2020, so the markets are pricing rate cuts.”

The dollar slipped against other major currencies, after having rebounded from three-month lows on Thursday following Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s comment which suggested the central bank is not done tightening monetary policy just yet.

A partial U.S. government shutdown extended into its 20th day and provided little comfort to the U.S. currency, after President Donald Trump threatened on Thursday to use emergency powers to bypass U.S. Congress to pay for a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.

“The (gold) market is holding back a little as they are concerned the equity market could rally significantly on trade war truce,” Innes said.

Asian equities inched up to one-month highs, but the rally’s momentum slowed partly as investors sought more clarity on whether the United States and China could make headways on their talks on trade as well as intellectual property rights.

“Once trade issues are resolved, the dollar is likely to remain suppressed, losing its appeal as a safe haven…Gold on the other hand would stand to benefit.”

Also aiding gold’s upward trend are concerns of weakening global growth, further emphasized by somber data out of Switzerland and France on Thursday.

“Gold will likely approach the short term resistance of $1,310 per ounce, from where some profit-booking can be seen,” said Religare Broking’s Sachdeva, adding that near term support can be seen at $1,275 per ounce.

Spot gold is expected to retest a resistance at $1,299 per ounce, with a good chance of breaking above this level and rising further to $1,311, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.

Palladium 0.4 percent to $1,326.75 per ounce, and was up about 2 percent for the week.

Silver climbed 0.6 percent to $15.65. However, it was poised to snap three sessions of weekly gains.

Chinese President Xi Jinping addressed his nation Tuesday morning in Beijing to commemorate the 40th anniversary of China’s “reform and opening up” — and he struck a relatively defiant tone in response to international calls for changes to his country’s economy. His remarks focused on how China’s Communist Party guided the nation to its economic success and emphasized the country’s right to pursue its own path going forward. In an address that lasted nearly 1 1/2 hours, Xi did not mention trade

Chinese President Xi Jinping addressed his nation Tuesday morning in Beijing to commemorate the 40th anniversary of China’s “reform and opening up” — and he struck a relatively defiant tone in response to international calls for changes to his country’s economy.

His remarks focused on how China’s Communist Party guided the nation to its economic success and emphasized the country’s right to pursue its own path going forward. In an address that lasted nearly 1 1/2 hours, Xi did not mention trade tensions with the U.S. and made only passing reference to market-oriented reform goals that previous speeches have discussed in detail.

That idea of progress contrasts with other countries’ increasingly vocal demands for less state control and could have significant consequences for whether the U.S. reaches a trade deal with China by the end of its 90-day tariff ceasefire.

Stocks bounced Monday and Tuesday, but a real year end rally may be elusive unless the market gets positive headlines from President Trump on trade and more dovish comments from the Fed. Now, if you’re long, you’re afraid it’s going to go down more, and if you’re short, you’ve done very well in a very short period of time.” Sohn said it’s possible the market could still rally in the historically strong month of December. Apple did muster a rally Monday,but it was slightly weaker Tuesday after Tr

Stocks bounced Monday and Tuesday, but a real year end rally may be elusive unless the market gets positive headlines from President Trump on trade and more dovish comments from the Fed.

Much market talk has focused on the upcoming Fed meeting Dec. 19, as well as the meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G-20 summit in Buenos Aires at the end of the week. But the market also risks being held back by the fact that the stocks have suffered so much technical damage in the selloff, the third-worst by this point in the fourth quarter in nearly 70 years.

Trump added a new level of nervousness to the market when he said in a Wall Street Journal interview Monday that he would likely proceed with 25 percent tariffs on Chinese goods in January. But comments from top White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow Tuesday helped lift stocks, when he said the White House was in talks with China “at all levels” ahead of Trump’s meeting with Xi on Saturday.

“The frustration levels are rising, regardless of whether this correction goes deeper or morphs into something else, which we think it will, but it’s very much contingent on the outcome of both the Trump, Xi meeting later this week and the Fed in December,” said Julian Emanuel, chief equities and derivatives strategist at BTIG.

Emanuel said there could be a sharp sell off — as much as 14 percent from current levels — if there is no sign of progress on trade.

“Given the fact positioning is so light and people are so defensive, even if there’s a worst case outcome, the downside could be cushioned for now, but it tells a completely different tale for 2019 because a more protracted economic cold war means multiples have to come in,” he said.

Emanuel said the market is frustrating both bulls and bears. “The fact that you’ve had so many gaps in the tape in a sideways market over the past month really just shows the fear of the bulls, which has turned into both fear and frustration,” he said, noting bulls have been expecting a strong year-end rally.

“The bears are getting nervous about their positions as well,” he said. “The fact tech is trying to make a bottom makes everybody nervous…It’s the opposite of what we’ve seen when tech was the momentum darling in 2017, when people got nervous. Now, if you’re long, you’re afraid it’s going to go down more, and if you’re short, you’ve done very well in a very short period of time.”

Even if there is a bigger December bounce coming, unless the market’s internals begin to improve, the market could have a rough road in the beginning of the year. Strategists had expected a rally after the November mid-term elections, but instead there was just more selling that wiped out most of the market’s gains for the year.

Todd Sohn, technical analyst at Strategas. Sohn said it’s possible the market could still rally in the historically strong month of December.

Apple did muster a rally Monday,but it was slightly weaker Tuesday after Trump also said in the interview that he could put tariffs on iPhones. Apple is seen as a battleground stock, and bulls are hoping if it stems losses, the market can move higher.

“You could get a rally into the end of the year, but if the participation concerns don’t subside, that could present some problems for next year,” said Sohn. He said about half the stocks in the S&P 500 are no longer in an uptrend.

Sohn said, as of Monday, about half the stocks in the S&P 500 had their 50-day moving averages below their 200-day moving averages. When that happens, and the market is heading lower, it is seen as a negative trend.

Apple has corrected 27 percent, and shares of Amazon, Google and Facebook have also sold off. “The tough part will be [knowing whether] it’s the low or just an oversold bounce going into the seasonal period,” he said.

As for the major events that could move the market higher, strategists say there has been some improvement on China even if it is superficial, and the Fed needs to sound more cautious about raising rates.

“Investors are expecting at least some softening in the rhetoric between the U.S. and China. That will be a milestone,” said Michael Arone, chief investment strategist at State Street Global Advisors. “If there is an agreement to negotiate and an agreement to hold off on more tariffs, the market could have a strong rally. But if there are more threats and no signs of peace, stocks could see more selling.

Arone said Fed Chairman Jerome Powell could use his speech on Wednesday at the Economic Club of New York to relieve some market anxiety about the Fed. Powell is unlikely to indicate that the Fed will pause in its rate hiking, as some market pros expect, but he could undo some of the aggressive tone from his early October speech when he said the Fed was far from the neutral rate.

“They’re already starting to walk back some of this. I don’t think Powell’s intent in early October was to signal anything about the pace or direction of interest rate hikes, and I think the market overreacted,” Arone said.

He said stocks currently reflect little chance of a trade deal so there could be a bounce once it’s clear which way the meeting between Trump and Xi is going.

The euro dropped to $1.121 on Tuesday morning, after the ECB’s chief economist Peter Praet told a conference in London Tuesday that a significant monetary policy stimulus is still needed. Speaking to CNBC, immediately after, Praet said: “I don’t think it is new, actually. We always communicate that to reach this inflation path, close to 2 percent in the medium-term, we need a substantial degree of monetary accommodation.” Praet, in his keynote address at the UBS European Conference, earlier on T

The chief economist of the European Central Bank played down his previous remarks that a substantial level of monetary policy is still needed in the euro area, after those comments sent the euro to a session low on Tuesday.

The euro dropped to $1.121 on Tuesday morning, after the ECB’s chief economist Peter Praet told a conference in London Tuesday that a significant monetary policy stimulus is still needed.

Speaking to CNBC, immediately after, Praet said: “I don’t think it is new, actually. We always communicate that to reach this inflation path, close to 2 percent in the medium-term, we need a substantial degree of monetary accommodation.”

“When we announced that we anticipate to end the asset purchase program at the end of this year, we said that we still needed a substantial degree of accommodation to support the base scenario,” Praet also told CNBC’s Joumanna Bercetche on Tuesday.

Praet, in his keynote address at the UBS European Conference, earlier on Tuesday, said central banks across the world have already tightened their monetary policy stance and unconventional policies have been wound down as well as policy rates have been “gradually increased.”

He, however, noted that in the euro area “significant monetary policy stimulus is still needed to support the further build-up of inflationary pressures and headline inflation developments over the medium term.”

New Zealand’s central bank struck a neutral tone as it marked two full years of steady policy on Thursday, saying its next move would depend on how the economy fared and cautioned of downside risks to growth from global trade frictions. As widely expected, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand kept the official cash rate (OCR) at 1.75 percent, where it has remained since late 2016, and reiterated it expected to hold rates into 2020. The central bank removed a line from its previous statements that its

New Zealand’s central bank struck a neutral tone as it marked two full years of steady policy on Thursday, saying its next move would depend on how the economy fared and cautioned of downside risks to growth from global trade frictions.

The New Zealand dollar rallied briefly and bonds sold off as the markets priced out any chance of a near term rate cut and instead focused on when New Zealand would join some of its global counterparts in raising rates.

As widely expected, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand kept the official cash rate (OCR) at 1.75 percent, where it has remained since late 2016, and reiterated it expected to hold rates into 2020.

“The timing and direction of any future OCR move remains data dependent,” Governor Adrian Orr said in a statement, and in a press conference later in the day he refused to rule out a rate cut if economic conditions deteriorated.

The central bank removed a line from its previous statements that its next rate move could be either up or down, but noted both upside and downside risks remained to growth and inflation projections.

“We don’t agree that the RBNZ needs to maintain the fence-sitting dual approach to policy,” said Citibank economist Paul Brennan.

“While our own forecasts show a near-term moderation in GDP growth, we expect CPI inflation to exceed the RBNZ’s latest forecasts and maintain the view that the OCR will need to rise from Q3 next year.”

A run of stellar economic data including a surprise drop in third-quarter jobless rate to 10-year lows, better-than-expected growth and inflation numbers over recent months, has given the RBNZ some breathing room.

However, Orr pointed to temporary factors for the pick-up in second-quarter economic growth and cautioned of headwinds to growth.

“Weak business sentiment could weigh on growth for longer. Trade tensions remain in some major economies, raising the risk that trade barriers increase and undermine global growth.”

The New Zealand dollar hit a fresh three-month high of $0.6820 immediately after the rate decision but quickly retreated from those levels to last hover around $0.6785.

Government bonds were sold off for a second straight day as investors priced out the risk of a cut with yields on the long-end of the curve up about 5 basis points.

President Donald Trump sought to strike a gentler, more positive tone at a campaign rally Wednesday, just hours after authorities intercepted at least seven pipe bombs intended for Trump’s political rivals. Trump began his rally in Mosinee, Wisconsin by decrying the assassination attempts, calling them “an attack on our democracy itself.” Those that are engaged in the political arena must stop treating political opponents as being morally defective.” The media also “has a responsibility to do mo

President Donald Trump sought to strike a gentler, more positive tone at a campaign rally Wednesday, just hours after authorities intercepted at least seven pipe bombs intended for Trump’s political rivals.

The bombs were mailed to former President Barack Obama, former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, former CIA director John Brennan, and Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., among others.

Trump began his rally in Mosinee, Wisconsin by decrying the assassination attempts, calling them “an attack on our democracy itself.”

“Such conduct must be fiercely opposed and prosecuted,” Trump said. “There is one way to settle our disagreements, it’s called peacefully, at the ballot box.”

The president was visiting the state, which he won in 2016, in the hopes of boosting support for several Republican candidates who are locked in tight races.

“We want all sides to come together in peace and harmony — we can do it, we can do it. We can do it, it’ll happen,” Trump told the crowd. “There’s much we can do to bring our nation together. Those that are engaged in the political arena must stop treating political opponents as being morally defective.”

“Destructive arguments and disagreements have to stop. No one should carelessly compare political opponents to historical villains, which is done often,” Trump continued. “We’ve got to stop. We should not mob people in public spaces or destroy public property.”

The media also “has a responsibility to do more to set a civil tone,” Trump said, “and to stop the endless hostility and constant, negative, and oftentimes false, attacks and stories. Have to do it. They’ve got to stop.”

Several times during his speech, Trump told the crowd he was “trying to be nice” in light of the assassination attempts on his political rivals.

Indeed, the difference was striking, and the crowd responded in-kind to Trump’s subdued tone.

Several of the attack lines Trump has used during recent campaign rallies were missing from his remarks on Wednesday night, including his false claim that undocumented aliens are trying to vote in the midterm elections, and that Democrats want to destroy the nation’s communities and families.

Yet even as Trump sought to play down his hyper-incendiary tone, he still held fast to several of his most well-worn, and false, claims.

“Liberal Tammy Baldwin wants socialist health care,” Trump falsely claimed about the Wisconsin Democratic senator who is up for reelection this cycle.

“I’m trying to say that very nicely,” Trump added. “Normally I would scream ‘socialist takeover!’ But I’m trying to be nice.”

In the case of France, the 2019 budget plan sees its structural deficit (the difference between spending and revenues, excluding one-off items) falling 0.1 percent this year and 0.3 percent in 2019. Though the tone of the warning from Brussels to Paris was softer than the tone towards Rome, the two countries have perhaps more similarities than differences. Italy has also been criticized for having very upbeat economic forecasts in its 2019 budget plan. Data from the European statistics agency, E

Markets have been on the edge regarding Italy’s future spending, but there are other countries challenging European fiscal rules.

France, the second-largest economy in Europe, received a letter from Brussels last week, warning that its planned debt reduction in 2019 does not respect the proposals that Paris had agreed previously with the EU. Spain, Belgium, Portugal and Slovenia were also effectively told off by the EU.

In the case of France, the 2019 budget plan sees its structural deficit (the difference between spending and revenues, excluding one-off items) falling 0.1 percent this year and 0.3 percent in 2019. Paris had agreed in April to an annual reduction of 0.6 percent of GDP (gross domestic product) for its structural deficit.

Though the tone of the warning from Brussels to Paris was softer than the tone towards Rome, the two countries have perhaps more similarities than differences.

The French 2019 budget “shows that the government relies heavily on very optimistic revenues to achieve fiscal consolidation and that spending is out of control again,” Daniel Lacalle, chief economist and investment officer at Tressis Gestion, told CNBC via email.

Italy has also been criticized for having very upbeat economic forecasts in its 2019 budget plan.

“In the case of France, it is a very difficult budget to accept by the European Commission because France has not had a balanced budget since 1974 and has missed its own deficit targets more than eleven times,” Lacalle added.

Data from the European statistics agency, Eurostat, shows that since it started collecting French data in 1978, France has never registered a budget surplus. Italy, which has provided data since 1995, has also never presented a budget surplus.

Several top Republicans in Congress have called for swift sanctions on the longtime U.S. ally in retaliation for Khashoggi’s death. Turkish officials have reportedly identified 15 Saudi officials they believe carried out the extra-judicial killing, several of whom work directly for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. “It will have to be very severe,” Trump told reporters at Andrews Air Force Base. Pompeo visited both Saudi Arabia and Turkey this week, but returned with few answers about what actua

Trump emphasized that his administration would “find out who knew what, when and where” about Khashoggi’s fate. He also said Congress will be involved “very much” on what the next steps would be in the U.S.-Saudi relationship. “I will very much listen to what Congress has to say,” Trump told reporters.

Several top Republicans in Congress have called for swift sanctions on the longtime U.S. ally in retaliation for Khashoggi’s death. But Trump has voiced concerns both publicly and privately about the potential risk of upending the longstanding military and diplomatic relationship.

Even as Trump refuted reports that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo received intelligence about Khashoggi’s death from the Turkish government, it was evident Friday that there was a shift in the president’s attitude toward Saudi Arabia, a longtime U.S. ally in the Middle East.

Trump appeared to dismiss the claims underpinning blanket denials coming from Saudi officials, who insist they know nothing about Khashoggi’s disappearance.

Representatives of the ruling Saudi royal family have yet to offer any alternative to their initial version of events, which was that Khashoggi entered the Saudi consulate on Oct. 2, and he walked out a short while later.

On Thursday, Trump said for the first time Khashoggi had most likely been killed. The president did not, however, say how he had reached this conclusion. Turkish officials have reportedly identified 15 Saudi officials they believe carried out the extra-judicial killing, several of whom work directly for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The president also took a harder line Thursday on what potential consequences Saudi Arabia might face if they are shown to have been involved in the dissident journalist’s death.

“It will have to be very severe,” Trump told reporters at Andrews Air Force Base. “It’s bad, bad stuff,” Trump said, before tacking on his preferred caveat: “But we’ll see what happens.”

Turkish officials have reportedly said they are in possession of tapes proving that Khashoggi was tortured to death and that his body was later dismembered. So far no U.S. officials have confirmed that they’ve seen the alleged tapes.

Pompeo visited both Saudi Arabia and Turkey this week, but returned with few answers about what actually happened. Saudi Arabia claims it is conducting an internal investigation into Khashoggi’s disappearance, but it has yet to present any results.

“I think there is a cost to email that we don’t consider,” he tells CNBC Make It. He’s even seen a few of his colleagues start to mention their own five sentence rule in their email signatures. In fact, she says, “a long email is a signal you’re using the wrong communication tool.” “A bad habit would be to try to fit everything into one long email that might have a negative tone to it.” Don’t miss:You switch tasks every 40 seconds, productivity expert says—here are his 5 tips for staying focused

“I think there is a cost to email that we don’t consider,” he tells CNBC Make It. “We’re able to get information from other people more quickly, but at the same time it makes our relationship a bit more shallow.” He says he’s learned that people appreciate short, thoughtful email responses. He’s even seen a few of his colleagues start to mention their own five sentence rule in their email signatures.

Workplace strategy expert and author Leigh Stringer tells CNBC Make It that sending long messages is one of the biggest mistakes professionals make when it comes to email. In fact, she says, “a long email is a signal you’re using the wrong communication tool.”

“If it’s an open-ended question, an in-depth question or a complex question that requires back and forth banter, it’s probably worth a phone call,” she says. “You think it’s faster communicating over email but it can actually be a time suck.”

Stringer says that in addition to wasting your own time, long emails can signal that you’re inconsiderate of other people’s time. “You never know what your boss is going through,” she says. “Don’t assume you are the only person in your boss’ life.”

Stringer suggests keeping your emails brief by using bullet points or bolded words to highlight anything requiring action. She says you should also triple-check the tone of your message to ensure that it’s coming across in a positive way.

“Quick notes on the status of a project you’re working on and keeping your boss informed is a good habit to form,” she says. “A bad habit would be to try to fit everything into one long email that might have a negative tone to it.”

Video by Beatriz Bajuelos Castillo

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Funding Circle made a positive market debut on Friday, valuing the British peer-to-peer lending platform at 1.5 billion pounds and testing investor appetite for large listings with London’s biggest for several months. Backed by Danish billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen and launched in 2010, Funding Circle is the first of Britain’s new breed of peer-to-peer financial technology firms to launch an initial public offering (IPO). The IPO, which valued Funding Circle at around 1.5 billion pounds and is

Funding Circle made a positive market debut on Friday, valuing the British peer-to-peer lending platform at 1.5 billion pounds and testing investor appetite for large listings with London’s biggest for several months.

Backed by Danish billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen and launched in 2010, Funding Circle is the first of Britain’s new breed of peer-to-peer financial technology firms to launch an initial public offering (IPO).

The IPO, which valued Funding Circle at around 1.5 billion pounds and is expected to help to set the tone for a string of large listings in Europe, was priced at 440 pence per share. Based on its offering size and price, Funding Circle raised around 440 million pounds on the London Stock Exchange.

The pricing was at the bottom end of the 420-530 pence per share price range set originally by the company and its advisers, and the stock opened in London at 460 pence before falling back to trade at to 444 pence at 0719 GMT.

Funding Circle’s online lending platform enables investors including banks, asset managers, insurers, government-backed entities and funds to lend to small and medium-sized businesses in Britain, the United State, Germany and the Netherlands.

The company said that in the six months to the end of June it had an adjusted loss before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of 16.3 million pounds on revenue of 63 million pounds, up from 13.2 million pounds the previous year.

Funding Circle’s flotation is a boost to the London Stock Exchange, which has been looking to attract large technology firms for whom New York is often more enticing because of its track record of technology floats.

Cyber security firm Avast went public in May 2018 and Alfa Financial, which provides software for the asset finance industry, rose sharply in its May 2017 listing.

A banker working on Funding Circle’s debut said the deal would set the tone for others:

“Once you get to three or four, it begins to be a track record and it opens a dialogue with investors.”